There are many different types of signals broadcast or transmitted to convey media, data or information. Common examples include television, radio, wireless internet and mobile phones. Some of these example broadcast signal types can be transmitted in multiple different ways or methods. For example, television and radio signals may be transmitted via earth-based transmitters (off-air), by satellite-based transmitters, or by physical wires (cable and fiber optic). Sometimes a combination of these ways are used.
Each type of signal and method of transmission usually requires a corresponding antenna configured to receive the media, data or information. For example, antennas for receiving satellite television broadcast signals are configured differently than antennas used to receive off-air television broadcasts. And each one cannot viably receive the other's signal. Therefore in this example, if a user desires to receive satellite television and off-air television broadcasts, the user must utilize multiple different antennas. The user must utilize two or more different and separate antennas because the antenna used to receive satellite television broadcasts cannot viably receive off-air broadcast signals, and vice-versa.
With the implementation of digital television signals, there has been a proliferation of local programming available via off-air transmissions. Usually not all of the off-air local programming is available via satellite transmission. And most of the programming available via satellite broadcast is not available via off-air reception. Therefore, some persons have both off-air and satellite antennas on their houses. Moreover, some attempts have been made to combine an off-air antenna with a satellite antenna. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,604,508, 5,606,334, Re 36,863 and 5,933,123 each disclose an off-air antenna combined with a satellite antenna dish that would be mounted on the roof of a house. However, these configurations are not suitable for use in a mobile environment. Indeed, the above-noted systems are open to the environment so they do not need to fit within any particular packaging requirements.
Components of antenna systems for mobile environments are typically housed within enclosures to protect against the elements. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,864,846 and 7,301,505, which are hereby incorporated by reference as part of the present application. It is desired to minimize the enclosure height because these types of systems are typically mounted on the roof of a vehicle, such as an RV. Manually transportable antenna systems are also known. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,595,764, which is hereby incorporated by reference as part of the present application. None of these systems includes an antenna for receiving off-air television broadcasts.
Therefore, a person desiring to receive both satellite television broadcasts and off-air television broadcasts in mobile environments, such as an RV, must use two separate antenna systems; one each for receiving each type of broadcast. Therefore, in addition to the mobile satellite antenna systems described above, the RV would also be fitted with one or more dedicated off-air television antennas on its roof. One example of this type of off-air antenna for RVs is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,262,793. Each antenna consumes limited roof space and also must be connected with a separate cable system. Therefore, cost and complexity is increased and flexibility of the RV configuration is decreased. Adding antennas for other types of broadcast signals compound these drawbacks. It would also be difficult to carry or move multiple separate antennas from one location to another. Therefore, there is a need for an enclosed antenna system that combines multiple different antennas within an overall package size that facilitates use in mobile applications.